This invention relates to the dental practice in general, and more particularly to a method and apparatus for the reinforcement of dentition in the mouth by means of dental splinting.
The use of dental splints is a highly specialized area of dentistry, and necessitates the use of special dental retaining splints. Most of the prior art devices have limited use, as for example for the lingual surface of anterior teeth, and also require complete procedures often including the formation of a dental impression from a cast model.
An improved dental retaining splint is provided in the aforementioned copending parent application which provides for a dental retaining splint having a bar-like body member with tubular means extending perpendicularly therefrom. The tubular means include axial openings extending therethrough. The body member is fabricated with an H-shaped cross sectional configuration, having the front end rear walls thereof serpentined to define sections therein which can be removed, such as by cutting, to provide a shorter splint. The splint is initially held in a channel formed in adjacent teeth, and the tubular means are utilized as guides for a drill to form pilot holes in the teeth. The pilot holes are then enlarged to form bores which can receive the tubular means. The splint is then repositioned in the channel with the tubular means disposed in the bores and an inlay fills in the channel to cover the splint.
With some teeth, especially the molars, a stronger splint is needed and a greater number of cylindrical members are needed in order to securely hold the teeth in place. Additionally, a larger size splint is required in order to span across the occlusal surfaces of these larger teeth. However, the larger splint may interfere with the spacing between the teeth when the splint has been suitably positioned into the crowns.